From Revolution to Politics: The Long March and the Rise of Mao Zedong (Illustrated Edition)

Author: Yang Bingzhang / Guo Wei
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2006-01-01
Features: This book centers on the Long March of the Red Army in the 1930s and discusses the interrelationship between the Chinese Revolution and Chinese politics. The authors have extensively utilized domestic and international literature, archival records, and personal accounts to clarify several historical mysteries. At the same time, they adopt a novel theoretical framework, moving from "revolutionary ideals" to "political realities"—that is, explaining the evolution of the CCP's political strategies and power structures through the gradual politicalization of the Chinese Communist Revolution. This transformation coincided with the establishment of Mao Zedong's leadership, and it was this very transformation, combined with the subjective spiritual force it provided and external factors, that enabled the Communists to achieve their ultimate victory. The book has generated significant impact in Western Sinology and is widely recognized as a definitive work in English on the Long March and Mao's revolutionary thought. The authors employ political science methodologies to construct a unique research system and model, using the shift from "revolutionary idealism" to "political realism" to explain the critical territorial and strategic changes of the CCP. They examine the gradual politicalization of Chinese communism during this transformation. The authors' research perspective offers important insights for studying the CCP's history in the 1930s.